[DetroitMan]

Traverse City-
Officials have finally decided to build a new bridge across the Boardman River Valley which will create a new east-west bypass of Traverse City. The bridge has been a hot topic for many years in the area. Traverse City is one of the fastest growing areas in the state and needs more east-west corridors to help move traffic in the area. When complete, it will be the fourth longest span in the state.

A $100M bridge: Traverse City bypass plan emerges from 30-year debate

In Grand Traverse County, officials have finally decided to embark on a multi-year project to build a controversial piece of infrastructure that would alleviate traffic congestion in one of the fastest growing communities in Michigan.In 2022, the county Road Commission voted unanimously to pave way for advance work on a 2,200-foot-long bridge across the Boardman River Valley, which, when finished, will create a new east-west corridor for drivers to bypass Traverse City.

Officials estimate the arching span will last 120 years and cost $100 million to build. Much of that is expected to come from federal infrastructure grants. Not counting international spans, it would be Michigan’s fourth longest bridge.

The July 28 decision marked a turning point in the long-successful effort by environmental and development opponents to keep the bridge at bay due to concern about potential negative impacts on valley wetlands and wildlife.

Opposition remains to the bridge, but project supporters say it has dwindled as the Traverse City area population swells and the few corridors which drivers can use to transit east or west across town have undergone reconstruction.
“It shouldn’t take me 40 minutes to get from one side of Traverse City to the other,” said Kevin Endres, chairman of the Grand Traverse County Economic Development Corporation. “It’s just five miles. It’s not a city with a million people.”

“There’s a demand. There’s a need for it. I see it every day,” said Endres, who works in commercial real estate. “We’re probably behind the eight ball in having this built already.”

“It’s well overdue.”

https://www.mlive.com/public-interes...ar-debate.html